Today Is: Maundy Thursday

Collect for: Maundy Thursday
Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ?s Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Old Testament
Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14

1 Now the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: 'On the tenth day of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man's need you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. 7 And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it. 8 Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

11 And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD's Passover. 12 For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. 13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 14 So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance.

12 Officiant: The Word of the Lord.
The People: Thanks be to God.

Psalm
Psalm 116

12 What shall I render to the LORD For all His benefits toward me? 13 I will take up the cup of salvation, And call upon the name of the LORD. 14 I will pay my vows to the LORD Now in the presence of all His people. 15 Precious in the sight of the LORD Is the death of His saints. 16 O LORD, truly I am Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant; You have loosed my bonds. 17 I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving, And will call upon the name of the LORD. 18 I will pay my vows to the LORD Now in the presence of all His people, 19 In the courts of the LORD's house, In the midst of you, O Jerusalem. Praise the LORD!

*At the end of the Psalms this is sung or said
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

New Testament
1 Corinthians 11:23-26

23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.' 25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.' 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.

Officiant: The Word of the Lord.
The People: Thanks be to God.

Gospel
John 13:1-15

Introduction to the Gospel:
Deacon:The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you. Or And with your spirit
Deacon: May the Lord be on our minds, on our lips, and on our hearts as we hear His Holy Gospel. The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Saint John.
People: Glory to You, Lord Christ.
Deacon: We are reading from John's Gospel chapter 13, beginning at verse 1.

1 Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. 2 And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him, 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, 4 rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. 5 After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. 6 Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, 'Lord, are You washing my feet?' 7 Jesus answered and said to him, 'What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.' 8 Peter said to Him, 'You shall never wash my feet!' Jesus answered him, 'If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.' 9 Simon Peter said to Him, 'Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!' 10 Jesus said to him, 'He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.' 11 For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, 'You are not all clean.' 12 So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, 'Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.

After the Gospel reading, the deacon elevates the book and says:
Deacon: The Gospel of the Lord.
People: Praise to You, Lord Christ.

Prayers of the People

Prayers of the People for: Maundy Thursday

Brothers and sisters, the Lord is gracious and merciful and full of loving-kindness. Therefore, lets us bring our needs and the needs of the whole world before Him.

That as Jesus humbled Himself and washed the feet of the Apostles, may the Church follow His lead and be the servant of all.
Lord in Your mercy,            Hear our prayer.

That God will supernaturally comfort and sustain the persecuted Church and that their witness will lead to the conversion of their oppressors.
Lord in Your mercy,            Hear our prayer.

That God will raise up young men and women into Christian ministry, holy and pleasing unto Himself, to lead His people in future generations.
Lord in Your mercy,            Hear our prayer.

That we will have the same attitude as Christ Jesus when he said to the Father, 'not My Will but Thy Will be done'.
Lord in Your mercy,            Hear our prayer.

That we will serve God by serving others, especially the poor, the forgotten and the marginalized.
Lord in Your mercy,            Hear our prayer.

That we who believe in Jesus, Who is the Resurrection and the Life, will defend life and help bring an end to abortion and euthanasia.
Lord in Your mercy,            Hear our prayer.

For our own special intentions. (Pause)
Lord in Your mercy,            Hear our prayer.

Most merciful God, through the Body and Blood of Your Beloved Son Jesus, You offer us eternal life and spiritual food. Hear our prayer and give us the grace to be a thankful people. We ask this through Christ our Lord. AMEN